{"id":90648,"date":"2021-03-10T15:32:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-10T20:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/thanksgiving\/"},"modified":"2023-10-06T22:18:48","modified_gmt":"2023-10-07T02:18:48","slug":"thanksgiving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/keriritenour.com\/grace\/thanksgiving\/","title":{"rendered":"Thanksgiving"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Issues &amp; Answers: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18\n(Thanksgiving)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: Rejoice\nevermore. <strong><sup>17<\/sup><\/strong>Pray without ceasing. <strong><sup>18<\/sup><\/strong>In\neverything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning\nyou.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">For a way to express their thankfulness for survival and the first harvest, the deeply reverent Pilgrims looked to the Bible. They found the celebrated Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), or Feast of Ingathering. The ingathering of Israelites (delivered from the desert of Sinai) and their harvest were celebrated in this feast and is the most joyous of all feasts still today (Leviticus 23).&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Scripturally, we find events, memorials and commands related to the issue of thanksgiving nearly from cover to cover. Individuals offered up sacrifices out of gratitude in the book of Genesis. The Israelites sang a song of thanksgiving as they were delivered from Pharaoh&#8217;s army after the crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 15). Later, the Mosaic Law set aside three times each year when the Israelites were to gather together. All three of these times &#8211; Unleavened Bread (also called the Feast of the Passover &#8211; Exodus 12:15-20), Harvest or Pentecost (Leviticus 23:15-21), and the Feast of Ingathering or Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:33-36) involved remembering God\u2019s provision and grace. Harvest and Tabernacles took place specifically in relation to God\u2019s provision in the harvest of various fruit trees and crops. The book of Psalms is packed full of songs of thanksgiving, both for God\u2019s grace to the Israelite people as a whole through His mighty deeds, as well as for His individual acts of grace extended to each of us.<br><br>\nAnother reference to giving thanks is found in the account of \u2018setting\u2019 what Samuel called <em>the Ebenezer Stone.<\/em> This was a memorial to remind them to be grateful for God\u2019s help during an attack from the Philistines (1 Sam. 7:10-12).&nbsp; Other verses that include thanks can be read in Ps. 100:4; 105:1; and 1 Corinthians 15:57. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">All early celebrations had one common focus &#8212; God. Thanksgiving was directed toward God, their Creator, Protector, and Provider. They believed that all good things ultimately came from Him as we do today (Ps. 84:11).&nbsp; What constitutes thanksgiving?&nbsp; How often are we to thank God?&nbsp; Is this a personal or corporate responsibility?&nbsp; Is it acceptable to celebrate the modern Thanksgiving holiday?&nbsp; To determine the Biblical answers, we look to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Historical Context:&nbsp; Written\nin approximately A.D. 50, 1 Thessalonians 1:1 indicates that the book of 1\nThessalonians was written by the apostle Paul, probably along with Silas and\nTimothy.&nbsp; In the church of Thessalonica\nthere were some misunderstandings about the return of Christ. Paul desired to\nclear them up in his letter. He also writes it as an instruction in holy\nliving.&nbsp; The first three chapters are\nabout Paul longing to visit the church in Thessalonica but not being able to\nbecause Satan stopped them (1 Thessalonians 2:18), and how Paul cared for them\nand was encouraged to hear how they had been. Paul then prays for them (1 Thessalonians\n3:11-13). In chapter 4, Paul is instructing the believers in Thessalonica on\nhow to live a holy life in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:1-12). Paul goes on\nto instruct them regarding a misconception, telling them that the people who\nhave died in Christ Jesus will also go to heaven when He comes back (1\nThessalonians 4:13-18, 5:1-11). The book ends with final instructions on living\nthe Christian life, including the offering of thanksgiving to God.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Grammatical Usage: \u201c<strong>Rejoice evermore<\/strong>\u201d in the Greek is \u201cchairete\npantote\u201d positioned in the present progressive tense; \u201c<strong>pray<\/strong>\u201d or \u201cprosecuchomai\u201d is always used of prayer to God (Deuteronomy 6:4: \u201c<em>The <\/em>LORD <em>our God is one <\/em>LORD\u201d;\nor \u201cThe LORD is our God, the LORD is one\u201d; or \u201cThe LORD is our God, the LORD alone\u201d)\nwhile the adverb \u201c<strong>ceasing<\/strong>\u201d or\n\u201cadialeiptos\u201d does not carry the meaning of uninterrupted but rather an action\nwhich is constantly recurring; \u201c<strong>thanks<\/strong>\u201d\nis \u201ceucharisteite\u201d and is an admonition to all believers to render thanks as it\nis God\u2019s will \u2013 circumstances notwithstanding (cf. Rom. 8:28; 29).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Literal Application: \u201cAlways be rejoicing at all times; <strong><sup>17<\/sup><\/strong>not\nneglecting your prayer life; <strong><sup>18<\/sup><\/strong>give thanks in all\ncircumstances, for this is God&#8217;s will for you in Christ Jesus.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Contextual Interpretation: The age-old question\nfrequently asked is: \u201cHow can I find God\u2019s will for my life?\u201d Paul says that we\ndon\u2019t need to worry about finding God\u2019s will, we merely need to find God and\nthen His will finds us. In these three verses are three commands which prove\ncentral and pivotal to the Christian \u2013 even in discovering God\u2019s will: <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong><em>Be joyful (5:16).<\/em><\/strong>This is one of approximately 70\nNew Testament commands to rejoice. This ought to remind us that choosing joy is\na decision of the will. While happiness depends on what is happening around us,\njoy is independent of happenings. This means we must remember that nothing\nmerely happens by chance (Pr. 16:33; Is. 46:9, 10). God is working out His\nsovereign plan in our lives (Eph. 1:11), therefore we must rejoice. This\ndoesn\u2019t mean life won\u2019t hurt, but even in the midst of the hurts we can\nrejoice, because we know that God is at work and in control. Consistent\nrejoicing is only possible if we remember three principles:<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>First, we must remember\nwho God is (1 Tim. 1:17). Nehemiah 8:10 states, \u201cthe joy of the Lord is your\nstrength.\u201d Joy has its roots in a deep thankfulness for <em>who<\/em> God\nis. If we focus on God\u2019s character and attributes (e.g., sovereign, merciful,\nfaithful, loving \u2013 see supplement), we will always have plenty of cause to rejoice.\n<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Second, rejoicing is\npossible if we then begin to recall <em>what<\/em> God has done, is doing,\nand will do. We can especially rejoice in what God has given us in Christ (John\n3:16). As we focus on our Lord, we will exude joy. Someone once said, \u201cA coffee\nbreak is good; a prayer break is better; a praise break is best.\u201d Can you\nrejoice in the Lord today? <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Finally, we can also\nrejoice in what God is doing in and through other believers. Paul only uses the\nword \u201cjoy\u201d one other time in 1 Thessalonians and he uses it of his own joy for\nthe spiritual maturity of the Thessalonians (3:9; cf. 2:19-20). As we begin to\nkeep our finger on the spiritual pulse of God\u2019s kingdom program, we will\nobserve that He is doing great things throughout our country and world. Even though\nyou may not feel like God is at work in your life, can you take your eyes off\nof yourself and see how He is at work elsewhere? In reality, God is at work in\nall our lives.&nbsp; The key is our\nsensitivity toward God which begins and ends with praise and thanksgiving. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong><em>Be prayerful (5:17). <\/em><\/strong>Praying without ceasing means\npraying repeatedly and often. The idea of the present tense imperative is not\nthat believers should pray every minute of the day, but that we should offer\nprayers to God repeatedly. We should make it our habit to be in the presence of\nGod. The Greek adverb translated \u201cwithout ceasing\u201d(<em>adialeiptos<\/em>) is used\noutside of the New Testament of a hacking cough. Have you had a cold recently?\nThen you know what it\u2019s like to cough spontaneously, right? There are times you\njust can\u2019t stop yourself. The same ought to be true of prayer. We should be\ncontinuously offering up prayers to the Lord because we just can\u2019t help\nourselves. We often go through life in such a hurry and so overwhelmed by our\nproblems that we think we don\u2019t have time to pray. That sense of hurriedness\ncan be spiritually devastating. Carl Jung said, \u201cHurry is not of the devil; it\nIS the devil.\u201d When you pray, you are forced to slow down. You are forced to\nshift the focus of your thoughts from yourself to God. You stop thinking of how\nimpossible everything is for you, and you start thinking of how possible\neverything is for God. You stop thinking of how weak you are, and you start\nthinking of how powerful God is. If you\u2019re a stay-at-home mom, this may mean\nthat you pray when you\u2019re getting ready in the morning, when you\u2019re\nhome-schooling your kids or driving them to school, when you\u2019re cleaning the\nhouse or doing the dishes. If you\u2019re a career man or woman, you can pray during\nyour commute, when you stretch at your desk, during your lunch break, before\nyou return home for the day.&nbsp; It is a\nfallacy that \u201cpractice makes perfect\u201d; however it is true that <strong><em>practice makes permanent<\/em><\/strong>. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong><em>Be thankful (5:18).<\/em><\/strong> The apostle Paul didn\u2019t say to\ngive thanks \u201cfor\u201d all circumstances, but \u201cin\u201d all circumstances.&nbsp; All of life\u2019s circumstances are not good, but\nthere will always be something in those circumstances for which to give thanks.\nPaul uses the word \u201cthanks\u201d only one other time in 1 Thess 2:13, where he thanks\nGod for the Thessalonians receiving the Word. This demonstrates that there are\nmany things that we can be thankful for. What are you thankful for today? Will\nyou express gratitude to God and others? Gratitude is likely the greatest\nevidence that you and I are filled with the Holy Spirit. God has blessed you\nand me, and He expects us to respond with hearts full of gratitude which serves\nthe dual role of offering and testimony.&nbsp;\nWe are called to both \u201cbe\u201d and \u201cdo\u201d &#8211; simultaneously and consistently.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">These three verses <em>are<\/em> God\u2019s will for you.&nbsp; Most\nof us want to know what God\u2019s specific will is for our lives\u2014who we\u2019re supposed\nto marry, where we\u2019re supposed to live, what job we should have. Yet God tends\nto give us freedom in these areas. But if He does want to reveal Himself more\nspecifically to you, He isn\u2019t about to do so until you first obey His general\nwill (Dt. 5:29; 6:2-4; 6:24). His general will is that you be joyful,\nprayerful, and thankful. Do you want specific direction? Do you want to know\nthe will of God? It is found in 5:16-18. Be joyful, prayerful, and grateful. If\nyou\u2019re not obeying these commands, you\u2019re not walking in the Spirit. You\u2019re out\nof the will of God, no matter how many gifts of the Spirit you might be\nexhibiting in your life. You may say, \u201cWell, I don\u2019t like that.\u201d I don\u2019t like\nit much either, but I didn\u2019t say it. God said it. The Bible is not only a\nsword, it is a hammer (Is not\nmy word like fire,&#8221; declares the LORD, &#8220;and like a hammer that breaks\na rock in pieces? \u2013 Jeremiah 23:29). Have you been hammered by the Word of God? &nbsp;Will you seek to obey these three commands so\nthat God can reveal more of Himself to you? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Scriptural Comparison: Because of what we have in Christ,\nbelievers have reason to rejoice even in the face of the many and varied trials\nof life. Maintaining a joyful spirit depends on our focus and faith in the\nLord\u2014His person, plan, principles, promises, and purposes as set forth in\nScripture. This doesn\u2019t mean life won\u2019t hurt, but even in the midst of the\nhurts, we can rejoice because we know that God is at work and in control. Note\nthe following:<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Some of the grounds\nfor rejoicing as Christians are:<\/strong> The Lord Himself\n(Phil. 3:1; 4:4), His incarnation (Luke 2:10), His power (Luke 12:17), His\nresurrection (Matt. 28:8; Luke 24:52), His presence with the Father (John\n14:28), His presence with believers (John 16:22; 20:20), His ultimate triumph\n(John 8:56), the believer\u2019s salvation (2 Cor. 8:2), enrollment in heaven (Luke\n10:20; Phil. 4:3), liberty in Christ (Acts 15:31, cf. Gal. 5:1), hope of the\nglory of God (Rom. 5:2), and his prospect of eternal rewards (Matt. 5:12; Luke\n6:23).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Some of the\noccasions for rejoicing for Christians are:<\/strong> Hearing the gospel (Acts 13:48), receiving the Lord (Luke 19:6; Acts\n8:39), suffering with Christ (Acts 5:41, cf. 1 Pet. 4:13), the preaching of the\ngospel (Phil. 1:18), suffering for the gospel (Phil. 2:17; Col. 1:24), the\nconversion of sinners (Luke 15:7; Acts 15:3), the manifestation of grace (Acts\n11:23), the godly walk of believers (Rom. 16:19; 2 Cor. 7:4; 3 John 3, 4),\ngodly submission to admonition (2 Cor. 7:9), the godly order of an assembly\n(Col. 2:5), receiving support and fellowship (Phil. 4:10), the rejoicing of\nothers (Rom. 12:15, 2 Cor. 7:13), hearing of the well-being of others (2 Cor.\n7:16), hearing of the kindness of believers to one another (Phil. 7), honor due\nto others (1 Cor. 12:26), and the triumph of truth (1 Cor. 13:6).<sup><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Paul states the\nparadox succinctly in 2 Corinthians 6:10: \u201c\u2026 sorrowful, yet always rejoicing\u201d\n(cf. 2 Cor 12:10). The Thessalonian Christians had already suffered with joy (1\nThes. 1:6), as had Paul himself (3:9). The challenge is for this joyful outlook\nto become constant (\u201calways\u201d). From a human perspective they had every reason\nnot to be joyful\u2014persecution from outsiders and friction among themselves. Yet,\nin Christ, they are to be more and more joyful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>How important is it to express thankfulness: <\/strong>\u201cHe\nappointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make\npetition, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel\u2026\u201d \u2013 1\nChronicles 16:4<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong>We should always be\nexpressing thankfulness.<\/strong>&nbsp; Certain Levites were appointed to give\ncontinual praise and thanks to God.&nbsp;\nPraise and thanksgiving should be a regular part of our routine, not\nreserved only for celebrations. Praise God continually and you will find that\nyou won\u2019t take His blessings for granted.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong>There are four\nsignificant aspects of thankfulness.<\/strong>&nbsp; Four elements of true thanksgiving are found\nin vv. 4-36: 1) <em>remembering<\/em> what God\nhas done; 2) <em>telling<\/em> others about it;\n3) <em>showing<\/em> God\u2019s glory to others; 4) <em>offering<\/em> gifts of self, time and\nresources.&nbsp; If you are truly thankful,\nyour life will show it.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>\u201c<\/strong>A Psalm. &#8212; A Song for the sabbath-day. It is good\nto give thanks to Jehovah, And to sing praises to Thy name, O Most High, <strong><sup>2<\/sup><\/strong>To\ndeclare in the morning Thy kindness, And Thy faithfulness in the nights.\u201d \u2013\nPsalm 92:1, 2<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong>Thankfulness ought\nto be a major ingredient in all our relationships. <\/strong>&nbsp;Duing the Thanksgiving holiday, we\nfocus on our blessings and express our gratitude to God for them. But thanks\nshould be on our lips every day.&nbsp; We can\nnever say thank you enough to parents, friends, leaders and especially to\nGod.&nbsp; When thanksgiving becomes an\nintegral part of your life, you will find that your attitude toward life will\nchange.&nbsp; You will become positive,\ngracious, loving and humble.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">\u201c\u2026because, having\nknown God they did not glorify [Him] as God, nor gave thanks, but were made\nvain in their reasonings, and their unintelligent heart was darkened\u2026.\u201d \u2013\nRomans 1:21<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong>One of the first\nmarks of rejecting God is forgetting to thank Him.<\/strong>&nbsp; How could intelligent people turn\nto idolatry?&nbsp; Idolatry begins when people\nreject what they know about God.&nbsp; Instead\nof looking to Him as the Creator and Sustainer of life, they see themselves as\nthe center of the universe.&nbsp; They soon invent\n\u201cgods\u201d that are convenient projections of their own selfish plans and\ndecrees.&nbsp; These gods may be wooden\nfigures or things we pursue such as money, power or comfort.&nbsp; They may even be misrepresentations of God\nHimself \u2013 making God in our image, instead of the reverse.&nbsp; The common denominator is this \u2013 idolaters\nworship the things God or man made, rather than God Himself.&nbsp; Is there anything you feel you can\u2019t live\nwithout?&nbsp; Is there any priority greater\nthan God?&nbsp; Do you have a dream you would\nsacrifice everything to realize?&nbsp; Does\nGod take first place?&nbsp; Do you worship God\nor idols of your own making?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>\u201c<\/strong>You were saved by faith in God, who treats us with\noverwhelming kindness &#8211; much better than we deserve. This is God&#8217;s gift to you,\nand not anything you have done on your own. <strong><sup>9<\/sup><\/strong>It isn&#8217;t\nsomething you have earned, so there is nothing you can brag about.\u201d \u2013 Ephesians\n2:8-9<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong>Thankfulness ought\nto be the prime characteristic in a Christian\u2019s life.<\/strong>&nbsp; When someone gives you a gift, do\nyou say, \u201cThat\u2019s very nice \u2013 now, how much do I owe you?\u201d&nbsp; No, the appropriate resopnse to a give is,\n\u201cThank you.\u201d&nbsp; Yet how often Christians,\neven after they have been given the gift of salvation, feel obligated to try to\nwork their way to God.&nbsp; Because our\nsalvation and even our faith are gifts of God, we should respond with\ngratitude, praise and joy which allows God to work through us!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li><strong>Thankfulness can\ntake on a variety of effective expressions.<\/strong>&nbsp; We become Christians through God\u2019s\nunmerited grace, not as the result of any effort, ability, intelligent choice\nor act of service on our part.&nbsp; However,\nout of gratitude for this free gift, we will seek to help and serve others with\nkindness, love and gentleness. &nbsp;While no\naction or work we do can help us obtain salvation, God\u2019s intention is that our\nsalvation will result in acts of service.&nbsp;\nWe are not merely saved for our own benefit, but to serve Christ and\nbuild up the church (Eph 4:12).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">The question is\noften sincerely asked if Christians should be participating in holidays\nrecognized either culturally or by the government.&nbsp; Here are a few things to consider: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">(A) Does the holiday in any way promote\nfalse doctrine or immorality (Galatians 5:19-23)?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">(B) Can we thank\nGod for what we observe on a holiday (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">(C) Will celebrating the holiday detract\nfrom your Christian testimony \/ witness (Philippians 2:15)? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><li>Conclusion: Nehemiah 8:10 states, \u201cthe joy of the Lord is\nyour strength.\u201d Joy has its roots in a deep thankfulness for <strong><em>what<\/em><\/strong>\nGod has done, is doing, will do, and for <strong><em>who<\/em><\/strong> God is (sovereign,\nmerciful, faithful, omnipotent, omniscience, omnipresent, loving, etc.). As\nsuch, joy takes the burden out of toilsome service and gives strength to\nendure. Joy is also a part of the fruit of the Spirit\u2019s control as described in\nGalatians 5:22. It is linked with love, peace, longsuffering, and kindness. In\nother words, the capacity to love people, be longsuffering and kind is directly\nrelated to inner joy. Thus, joy is needed always, expressed continually and\nultimately directed to God whether in praise, thanksgiving or manifested in our\nactions and reactions one toward another.<\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Issues &amp; Answers: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (Thanksgiving) 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: Rejoice evermore. 17Pray without ceasing. 18In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. For a way to express their thankfulness for survival and the first harvest, the deeply reverent Pilgrims looked to the Bible. They found the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[524],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Thanksgiving - Grace Evangelical Free Church<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Thanksgiving - Grace Evangelical Free Church\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Issues &amp; Answers: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (Thanksgiving) 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: Rejoice evermore. 17Pray without ceasing. 18In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. For a way to express their thankfulness for survival and the first harvest, the deeply reverent Pilgrims looked to the Bible. 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